Method of assembling buckles



J1me 1941. s. SCHILLER METHOD OF ASSEMBLING BUCKLES 2 Sheets-Sheet l Fi-led May 27, 1940 June 17, 1941. s. SCHILLER 2,245,725.

METHOD OF ASSEMBLING BUCKLES Filed May 27, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 35' my 23 2b Patented June 17, 1941 I UNITED STATES PATENT UFFECE 2,245,725 METHOD OF ASSEMBLING BUCKLES Saul Schiller, Brooklyn, N. Y. Application May '27, 1940, Serial No. 337,373

' -3 Claims. (01. 223- 19) The present invention relates to improvements in buckles and methods of assembling the component parts of the same with each other-and with a strap or the like. I

One of the objects of the present inventionis to provide a superior buckle characterized by the provision of means whereby the component elements of such buckle may be readily, rapidly and economically assembled with each other and with a strap or the like.

Another object'of the present invention is to provide a superior buckle comprising a plurality of relatively-movable parts so constructed and arranged that the said parts maybe concurrently assembled with each other while one thereof is assembled to a strap or the like.

I A further object of the present invention is to provide a superior method for assembling the component elements of a multiple-part buckle with each other and with a strap or the like.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a superior method for assembling the elements of multiple-part buckles with each other and with both the so-called fixed-portion and the so-called freeor running-portion of a strap or the like.

With the above and other objects in view, as will appear to'those skilled in the art from the present disclosure, this invention includes all features in the said disclosure which are novel over the prior art and which are not claimed in any separate application.

In the accompanying drawings, in which certain modes of carrying out the present invention are shown for illustrative purposes:

Fig. 1 is a broken View in front-elevation of a buckle embodying the present invention and shown as assembled on a strap having a button loop organized therewith;

Fig. 2 is an edge view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a rear view thereof;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the body-member detached;

Fig. dis a perspective View of the grippinglever looking mainly at the inner face thereof and showing the same in its bowed form prior to its assembly with the body-member and the strap;

Fig. 6 is a'fragmentaryrear elevational viewof a portion of the strap showing the body-member in position thereon just preparatory to assembly with the gripping-lever;

Fig. 7 is a broken. view in rear elevation showing the so-called freeor running-portion of the strap and the body-member in the positions indicated in Fig. 6 and showing, in addition, the

gripping-lever located between the ears of the said body-member preparatory to flattening the said gripping-lever, suitable dies for the assembling operation being indicated by broken lines;

Fig. 8 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a view corresponding to Fig. 8 but showing the positions of the parts after the gripping-lever has been flattened for permanent assembly with the body-member and after the socalled fixed-portion of the strap has been permanently secured to the said gripping-lever;

Fig. 10 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line Ill-l0 ofFig. 9; and

Fig. 11 is a broken perspective view of the completely-assembled buckle together withportions of both the fixed-portion and the freeor running-portion of the strap and showing the gripping-lever in its releasing position. The particular buckle herein chosen for illus trating the present invention in Figs. 1- to -11 inclusive, includes a body-member generally designated by the reference character 20 and a gripping-lever generally designated by the reference character 2 l. The body-member 23 may be conveniently formed from sheet metal and-is provided at its respective side edges with rearwardlyextending ears 22-22 each of which is formed Witha perforation 23.

The gripping-lever 2| is adapted to have secured thereto, in a manner as will hereinafter appear, the fixed-portion 24 of a strap 25, the free-- or running-portion 26 of which is adapted to be clamped againstthe rear face of the bodymember 20 when the gripping-lever 2| is assembled with the said body-member and swung into the position in which the said lever is shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings.- I

The gripping-lever 2| may be conveniently struck-up from sheet-metal and is respectively provided at its'upper and lower edges with forwardly-extending gripping-teeth 2'! and 26. The said gripping-lever is also provided at its respective side edges in line with the junction of the gripping-teeth 21 and a panel-portion 29,'with laterally-projecting pintles or mounting-lugs 3fl 30 which are adapted to be entered into the perforation 23 in the adjacent one of the ears 22 22 of the body-member 28. Adjacent the gripping-teeth 28 the gripping-lever 2| is formed at its respective side edges with clamping-fingers 3 l-3l, each of which initially extends forwardly (Figs. ,5, 7 and 8) but is adapted to be folded over the fixed-portion 24 of the strap 25 for attaching the said fixed-portion to the gripping-lever 2|, as is shown particularly well in Fig. 11.

When the clamping-fingers 3|-3| are folded over as above referred to, the gripping-teeth 28 of the gripping-lever 2| are embedded in the adjacent portion of the fixed-portion 24 of the strap- 25 and serve to aid the said clampingfingers in preventing the fixed-portion 24 from displacement or slippage relative to the said gripping-lever. When the parts are positioned as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, the gripping-teeth 21 of the gripping-lever 2| serve to engage the rear face of the adjacent portion of the running portion 26 of the strap 25 to thus securely retain the body-member 20 and the gripping-lever 2| and hence the fixed-portion 24 of the strap 25 against relative longitudinal movement with respect to the said running-portion. The foregoing description relates mainly to buckle structure and its associated strapafter the same has been assembled by means of the novel method of the present invention. The following will be mainly devoted to the description of the method of assembling the said buckle and its associated strap. 2

Prior to assembly with the body-member 2|), the gripping-lever 2|, which comprises one of the two main elements of the buckle structure, is initially formed in what may be characterized as a distorted form, as isparticula'rly' well shown in Figs. 5, 7 and 8. In these figures it will be noted that the clamping-fingers 3|-3| f the gripping-lever 2| are in their open'condition and extended forwardly from the respective opposite edges of the panel por'tion 29 of the 1' said gripping-lever. It will be further noted by reference to the figures referred to that the panel-portion 29 of the gripping-lever 2| is bowed or arched in a direction extending between its two integral clamping-fingers 3l-3l.

By bowing or convexing the gripping-lever 2|, as above referred to, the distance between its pintles 30-33 is less than is the case when the panel-portion 29 is flattened in a manner as will hereinafter appear. Under these conditions it will be apparent that the pintles 38-30 of the gripping-lever 2| may be readily and easily inserted respectively between the ears 22-22 of the body-member 29. It is preferred that the panel-portion 28 of the gripping-lever 2| besufiiiciently arched so that the complemental ears 22-22 of the body-member 2!! require but'a very slight outward flexing to permit the entry thereinto of the respective pintles 3%3-39 of the grip ping-lever 2| to thus tentatively or slightly retain the said members in assembled positions relative to each other.

In assembling the buckle members 20 and 2| with each other and with the strap 25; it is preferred that the so-called' freeor runningportion 26 of the said strap be first placed against the rear face of the body-member 20in a manner indicated particularly well in Fig.' 6. The next normal step would be to insert the now-bowed or deformed gripping-lever 2| between the ears 22-22 of the body-member 20 so that the pintles 32-30 of the said grippinglever enter the perforations 23-23 of the respective ears 22-22, all as clearly indicated in Figs. '7 and 8.

At this time a button-loop such as the buttonloop 33, or any other suitable device it is desired to suspend by the strap'2 5, may be threaded over the fixed-portion 24 of the said strap. The fixed portion 24 of the strap 25-may now be placed "the against the forward face of the gripping-lever 2| and over the gripping-teeth 28 thereof, as is indicated by broken lines in Fig. 8.

With the body-member 20 and the grippinglever 2| tentatively assembled as above described and as shown particularly well in Figs. '7 and 8, the parts are positioned so that the ends of the clamping-fingers 3|-3| are engaged with the properly-contouredface of a finger-folding die 34 indicated by broken lines in Figs. 7 and 8. On the opposite side of the gripping-lever 2| from the finger-folding die 34 is a lever-flattening die 35.

If now the finger-folding die 34 and the leverflattening die 35 are either or both moved toward the other, the complemental clamping-fingers 3|-3| of the gripping-lever 2| will be folded over-the fixed-portion 24 of the strap 25 to firmly grip the same. At the same time that the clamping-fingers 3|-.s| are folded as just described, the panel-portion 29 of the gripping-lever 2| will have its arched or bowed form wholly or partly flattened to thereby increase the distance between the pintles 30-33 to thereby firmly seat the said pintles in their respective perforations 23-23 in the ears 22-22 of the bodymember 20 so that the said gripping-lever assumes the relationship substantially as shown particularly well in Figs. 9, 10 and 11.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the gripping lever 2| maybe operatively united with the bodymember 20 concurrently with the securement of the fixed-portion 24 of the strap 25 to'the said gripping-lever. Furthermore, prior to the substantially concurrent operations just described, the so-called free-portion 26 of the said strap 25 will have'been positioned between the gripping-teeth 27 of the gripping-lever 2| and the rear face of the body-member 20, so that the subsequent threading through of the said free-portion 26 is not required.

General considerations From the foregoing it will be seen that by means of the present invention the securement of the fixed-portion of a strap to one member of a buckle structure may be effected while the parts of the buckle structure are in substantially the position'in which they may be assembled together. Furthermore, the so-called freeor running-portion of a strap may be positioned properly between the cooperating members of a buckle prior to the assembly of such members to thereby avoid the time-consuming and delicate operation of threading such free-portion between the said elementsafter the same has been permanently assembled.

The invention may be carried out in other specific ways than those'herein set forth without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of the invention, and the present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and all changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.

I claim:

1. The method for assembling the two elements of a lever buckle and a strap, comprising: providing a body-member having two laterally-spaced-apart perforated ears extending in substantial parallelism with each other; providing a clamping-lever having two oppositelyprojecting pintles one at each of its respective opposite ends, the said clamping-lever beingalso provided with bendable strap-gripping means and being arched intermediate the two said oppositely-projecting pintles to cause the two said pintles to be initially closer together than is the case when the said clamping-lever is not so arched; inserting a strap in position to be gripped by the bendable strap-gripping means of the said clamping-lever when the same is bent; registering the v oppositely-projecting pintles of the arched clamping-lever respectively with the perforations in the spaced-apart parallel ears of the said body-member; forcibly flattening the arched form of the said clamping-lever to thereby cause its oppositely-projecting pintles to move away from each other and into the perforations in the ears of the said body-member; and bending the strap-gripping means of the said clamping-lever against the adjacent portion of the said strap substantially simultaneously with the described flattening of the arched clamping-lever.

2. The method for assembling the two elements of a lever-buckle and a strap, comprising: providing a body-member having two laterallyspaced-apart perforated ears extending in substantial parallelism with each other; providing a clamping-lever having two oppositely-projecting pintles one at each of its respective opposite ends, the said clamping-lever being also provided with bendable strap-gripping means and being arched intermediate the two said oppositely-projecting pintles to cause the two said pintles to be initially closer together than is the case when the said clamping-lever is not so arched; inserting one end of a strap into position to be gripped by the bendable strap-gripping means of the said clamping-lever and against one face of the latter; locating an intermediate portion of the said strap adjacent the opposite side of the said clampingdever from the said end; subsequently to the two steps just mentioned, registering the oppositely-projecting pintles of the arched clamping-lever respectively with the perforations in the spaced-apart ears of the said body-member to thereby locate the said intermediate portion of the strap between the two said members prior to their attachment to each other; forcibly flattening the arched form of the said clamping-lever to thereby cause its oppositely-projecting pintles to move away from each other and into the perforations in the earsof the said body-member; and bending the strap-gripping means of the said clamping-lever against the adjacent portion of the said strap substantially simultaneously with the described flattening of the arched clamping-lever.

3. The method for assembling the two elements of a lever-buckle, comprising: providing a bodymember having two laterally-spaced-apart perfora-ted arms extending in substantial parallelism with each other; provided a clamping-lever having two oppositely-projecting pintles with one at each of its respective opposite ends, the said clamping-lever being arched intermediate the two said oppositely-projecting pintles to cause the two said pintles to be initially closer together than is the case when the said clamping-lever is not so arched; registering the oppositely-projecting pintles of the arched clamping-lever respectively with the perforations in the spacedapart parallel ears of the said body-member; and forcibly flattening the arched form of the said clamping-lever to thereby cause its oppositelyprojecting pintles to move away from each other and into the perforations in the ears of the said body-member.

SAUL SCHILLER. 

